Covid infections show increase in latest weekly figures

Coronavirus infections have increased in Scotland with around one in 40 people estimated to have the virus, the latest figures show.

Data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) shows around 128,400 people in private households north of the border are estimated to have had the virus in the week ending February 28 – about 2.44% of the population.

In the previous week, ending February 21, the ONS estimated 117,100 people in Scotland had the virus – about one in 45 people, or 2.22% of the population.

Michelle Bowen, head of health surveillance dissemination at the ONS, said: “It is an uncertain picture across much of the UK, with Scotland showing increases in the number of people testing positive for Covid-19 in the latest week.

“Infections continue to vary across regions and age groups in England. Though many age groups have uncertain trends, rates are increasing in the over-70s.”

While Scotland saw an increase in infections, the trend in the other parts of the UK is uncertain.

In England, around one in 40 people had the virus in the week ending February 28, the ONS said, while in Wales it was one in 45.

In Northern Ireland, around one in 75 people had Covid-19, which would be around 1.35% of the population.